**
Lexina sat down at a corner of a table dropping her cafeteria special onto the
surface.

"Mmm, nummy treat," she muttered as she poked at the unidentifiable
substance. It certainly wasn't going to do much for her hangover, nor was
the mindless chatter that surrounded her. Kim had a nice stash of whiskey that
they'd gotten into at the older girl's apartment.

Goddess only knows why I felt the need to drink my weight.

Overall, it had still been a very enjoyable night. The blonde had raised
an eyebrow when she'd gotten a look at the various bruises and Lex's
shoulder wound but hadn't asked any questions.

Lex had stumbled out of Kim's bed around seven this morning excusing
herself for school. The blonde had made her coffee and given her a pleasant send
off slipping her phone number into Lex's pants pocket. If it hadn't
been for her reticence to be in the same vicinity as her Dhaskalos she would
be sleeping right now rather than torturing herself.

Oh well, serves me right.

She'd only stayed in the apartment long enough to switch her leather
patrol gear for her school clothes. She'd traded leather pants and boots
for black cargo pants and Sketchers. Her leather coat and vest were replaced
with a ribbed black tank top and zip up hoodie. The only spot of color was the
intense blue of her eyes and the teen was well aware of the intimidating image
she cast. It was this image that she depended on to keep everyone at bay.

When the school year had started she'd gotten a few smartass remarks
but a knee to some choice places and a good chokehold had put a stop to it early
on. Lex had changed schools this year mainly to avoid running into any of her
old clique. She doubted any of them would even look at her nowadays but she didn't
want the hassle of finding out. She took a bite of her lunch scrunching up her
nose in distaste. As she ate she found her mind wandering to how her change in
lifestyle had come about. The catalyst, if she thought about it, had been her
Mom's murder.

Her Dhaskalos had given her a respectable amount of time to grieve her mother's
death, allowing Lex to sulk and cry and neglect her patrols. The Hunter could
vividly remember the day Athena had ended her pity party. The woman had barged
into the room and fairly dragged her out of bed throwing her into the shower
still clothed in her night attire. When the Hunter had finally gotten the presence
of mind to get out from under the icy spray she'd stalked to her Dhaskalos' office
dripping wet and thinking bloody murder.

The short brunette had been sitting calmly at her desk typing away at her
computer. "You're angry," she'd stated without looking
up from her work.

"That's one way to put it," the Hunter had ground out clenching
and unclenching her fists.

"Good." Her Dhaskalos stood pulling a crossbow down from a shelf. "At
the risk of sound trite or cliché anger is more productive then depression.
Use it." She'd handed the Hunter the weapon looking directly into
ice blue eyes. "You can't save your mother but you can help others
like her. If you give yourself to your duties she will not have died in vain,
use this as an opportunity to become the best tool for good that you can possibly
be."

And she had, drilling with Athena day in and day out, learning magic and patrolling
the city with a violence born from the need for vengeance and retribution. There
were few she'd crossed swords with that hadn't met their ends at
her hands. Those few that had escaped were yet to be heard from again. Lex took
comfort in the knowledge that supernatural deaths in the city had taken a nosedive
because of her efforts. She knew the war was far from over, would in fact not
end until long after her own death, but she held onto the hope that the forces
of good would continue to hold their ground while she was one of the Thirteen.

The throbbing in her head pulled her from her musings and Lex closed her eyes
to try and lessen the nausea.

God I feel like I've been hit by a bus. The Hunter suppressed
an undignified giggle at the thought.

Actually I bet that leech from last night feels a lot worse than I do.

Lex dropped her head down to her chest asking whatever deity was listening
to either strike her down or rid her of her headache. The pain behind her eyes
pulsed in time with her heartbeat and sheer stubbornness was all that kept her
in class rather than at home nursing her head.

Fuck it, I'm not that stubborn, I need some sleep if I'm gonna
go on patrol tonight. Lexina stood dumping her tray into the garbage and
heading out of the cafeteria. The other students gave her a wide berth as she
passed no one willing to test her temper.

Heh, let them hate so long as they fear, right?

She made a quick stop by her locker to grab her backpack and headed for the
front door. She settled the bag on her good side hoping to prevent any further
injury to her back. She was almost in reach of the doors when a hand came down
on her shoulder.

"Miss Ballard."

The Hunter fought her initial reaction which was to swing around and stroke
out whomever dared to touch her. Realizing her surroundings she settled instead
for wrenching free of the voice's grasp biting back a pained yelp as she
felt her stitches tighten against her skin.

Fuck a duck.

Hey I rhyme.

God I annoy myself. These internal arguments were beginning to get
out of hand.

"Leaving early Miss Ballard?" Lex looked at her chemistry teacher.

"I, uh," the Hunter stumbled for a plausible excuse. When none
was forth coming her teacher took her arm and turned her back toward the cafeteria.

"I'll see you in class after lunch I trust?"

"Uh, right. Class..."

"Good." With that he walked back into his classroom and Lex headed
toward the cafeteria.

Of all the apathetic, asshole teachers, I have to get the one do gooder
who insists on busting my balls about attendance. Not that she cared, she'd
just leave through the South doors.

Ah the joys of being one of the gods' Chosen.

Moving quickly from the building to the edge of the fenced grounds the Hunter
looked for the best route of escape. The high school had a thing about kids being
off campus during school hours so they maintained guarded entrances. Of course,
there was more then one way to slip off grounds, Lex certainly wasn't the
only one skipping class.

Taking a quick look around for any spectators the Hunter crouched and jumped
her powers easily allowing her to clear the eight foot brick wall. She landed
lightly on the other side, again scanning for anyone who may have seen her. Athena
didn't approve of such blatant abuse of her powers but Lex figured that
all things considered she was entitled a little leeway now and again.

The Hunter pulled her skateboard from its pouch on her knapsack and jumped
on headed for home. She lived relatively near the downtown core, mostly for ease
of patrol: back alleys and dark subway stations were big attack areas. She rode
the metro on a nightly basis to patrol the trains and stations then moved to
the graveyards near dawn to catch the vamps coming back from their hunts.

I need something for this headache, Siobhan's shop isn't far
from here, I wonder if she'll have any of that root she gave me last time. Lex
jumped the curb and changed directions heading for downtown proper.

She rolled to a stop outside Siobhan's shop flipping her board into
her hand with her shoe. The bell above her chimed as she opened the door and
the shopkeeper looked up from her text.

"Lexina, this is a surprise," the redhead smiled at her. Lex liked
the Irish witch, she found the woman's voice, both her accent and tone,
quite soothing.

Although I wouldguess that's part and parcel of working
with healing magic.

"Hi Siobhan."

"Someone was in the tank last night wasn't she?"

"Is it that obvious?" The Hunter asked with a groan as she sat
at the common area table. Siobhan chuckled and stood patting the Hunter's
shoulder.

"I'm sure only to me Little One. I'll get you something
to help."

"You're a saint," Lexina leaned on the table closing her
eyes as she listened to the witch putter around. A few moments later a spicy
smelling tea was placed in front of her and the Hunter took a sip. "Oh
that's good."

"Why don't you lie down in the back for a few hours and get some
rest?"

"Thanks but I should get home, the school's gonna be calling the
apartment soon. If I'm not there when they call Athena's gonna have
a shit fit." Siobhan nodded handing the brunette two pouches.

"That one is the tea, it'll help with the nausea, this one is
the root. Chew on it, it'll help oxygenate the blood and bring down the
headache."

"Thanks, what do I owe you?"

"Hmm," the redhead tapped her chin and looked around the shop. "I
could use your muscles shifting those boxes that arrived today." Lex slugged
back the rest of her tea and shoved a piece of root into her mouth.

"Let's go to work."

**

"Hi Siobhan," Megan called out as she entered the occult shop
to the ring of the old bell on top of the door.

"Ah Megan, it's been awhile," the shopkeeper came out from
behind the counter her hands full of old texts.

"I know, I'm sorry. I meant to get down here during the summer
but with my internship being over in Montreal I didn't get the chance."

"It's no problem dear, things have been busier than usual here
so I've kept myself occupied." Megan smiled at the woman feeling
guilty for not making more of an effort to see her. The shopkeeper didn't
have any help in the store so was alone most of the day, Megan also got the feeling
the witch had a less than hectic social life.

"I'm glad business is good. Do you want some help with the new
inventory?"

"That would be wonderful, I just received a shipment of crystals that
I haven't had a chance to catalogue much less display."

"I'll get started on those then."

"Perfect. Oh by the way," Siobhan put down her armful of books
and walked over to a box of new shipments. "Ah here it is, this one is
a great guide for the solitary witch." Siobhan handed the hefty book to
Megan. The blonde opened the book raising an eyebrow at the shopkeeper as she
looked up from the text. The woman smiled and let out a laugh handing Megan a
second text.

"Sumerian to English, a translation?" Megan whined.

"You wanted to learn some of the languages, that's the best way."

"I suck at translations."

"Practice makes perfect, I'll help you if you need a hand of course
but you have to realize that most of the authentic magic texts don't come
in English. If you want to learn magic you have to learn language."

"I know, I know. Blah, I had a hard enough time learning English."

"Try learning Groxlar," Siobhan commented as she took up the stack
of books.

"Aren't Groxlar's those baby eating demons?"

"Yes."

"Why would you want to learn their language?"

"Mostly so you can scream obscenities at it while it devours your flesh.
They're not particularly fond of diplomacy."

"Pleasant."

"The crystals are over by the register."

"Okay," Megan set her books down and went to the register grabbing
the crystal identification book and the inventory list from under the counter.
She began pulling each crystal from its velvet pouch writing it down in the book
and grouping them by name. The task was long and rather tedious but Megan found
it relaxing compared to the fast paced journalism internship she'd completed
during the summer. Now she had her second year of university to look forward
to. It was barely a week into classes and she could already feel herself falling
behind despite her best efforts.

Stupid papers.

The crack of glass startled her from her task and Megan looked up to see a
fist sized hole in the shop's front window. Siobhan came out from the stacks
shaking her head and bending down to retrieve the rock. Megan went to the door
and looked outside unsurprised to find the assailants long gone.

"What the hell was that all about?" Megan asked closing the door
and approaching the shopkeeper.

"I've been having trouble with some of the youth gangs this summer.
I'm sure it'll settle down now that school has started."

"Have you contacted the police?"

"Of course, but you know as well as I do that the law enforcement agencies
here are useless."

"Something has to be done Siobhan, they may get tired of breaking windows
and start trying to hurt you." Siobhan dismissed the idea with a wave of
her hand.

"They're young vandals Megan, not hardened criminals." The
shopkeeper handed the blonde the rock and picked up the pieces of glass. She
arranged them in order and Megan saw the woman's hand begin to glow. The
glass melted into a single piece and Siobhan placed it in the hole in the window.
Megan's eyes widened as Siobhan took her hand away revealing a seamless
patch. The blonde had only rarely seen the shopkeeper openly use magic so it
still impressed her to no end. She walked up to the window running her palm along
it.

"That's amazing," Megan turned away. "But it doesn't
change the reality of things. You need some protection, you should hire another
store clerk. I don't like that you're here alone. Something could
happen and there'd be no one to help you."

"I'm certainly not helpless Megan and I can't afford to
take on another hire," Siobhan stated.

"Why?" Megan asked following the shopkeeper back to the till. "I
thought business was good."

"It is, but I have expenses that are barely keeping this store in the
black."

"No, I have some ongoing spells which require continuous maintenance
and the ingredients get expensive."

"Oh." Megan managed to keep her curiosity at bay for a total of
30 seconds before it got the best of her. "What kind of continuous spells?"

"27 seconds, that's the longest time yet," Siobhan said
looking at her watch.

"I counted to 29 and a half, and I'm guessing by the subject change
that you aren't going to tell me."

"Sorry."

"That's okay, I understand."

"Good, it's getting on in the day, do you have to take care of
your niece tonight?"

"Huh?" Megan looked at her watch and cursed. "Shit, I gotta
go, I'm going to be late picking her up from school." Megan put the
rock down on the counter and grabbed her backpack heading for the door. "I'll
come by tomorrow after my morning classes and help with the rest of the inventory."

"Megan?"

"Yeah?" Siobhan pointed to the two books lying on the table and
Megan ran to the table picking them up and practically sprinting for the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow Little One."

"Blessed be."

"Blessed be."

**

"Hi, I'm Tara's aunt Megan, I'm so sorry I'm
late, traffic was insane. I'm here to pick her up," Megan explained
in a rush, out of breath from sprinting from the parking lot to the classroom.

"It's alright, Tara's playing with some of the other children
who are still waiting to be picked up." The kindergarten teacher said indicating
with her head toward a corner of the classroom where Megan's niece was
playing with two other children. "Tara's mother informed us you'd
be picking her up, I'll just need a piece of ID."

"Oh, for sure," Megan pulled out her license handing it to the
woman.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

"Tara your aunt is here." The young girl jumped to her feet her
eyes lighting up. It was the first time Megan had seen the girl since before
her summer internship at the paper.

"Megan!" She screamed as she charged at the blonde her arms open.
Megan crouched down and took the girl in a hug lifting her tiny form off the
ground. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, did you have a good summer?"

"Yep, Mom and Dad took me to see the whales."

"The whales? Cool, why don't you go get your backpack and you
can tell me about it on the way home?"

"Okay." The girl went off to her hook to get her belongings and
Megan turned to her teacher.

"I'm Julie Fischer by the way," the woman said holding out
her hand. Megan took it shaking firmly and smiling at the teacher. She didn't
look to be much older than Megan, maybe her sister's age.

"It's good to meet you, is this your first year teaching?"

"Is it that obvious?" Megan laughed shaking her head.

"No, not really. You look young so I assumed you were fairly fresh out
of university."

"Yes, graduated last spring, I substituted here for the first graders
last year. When Mrs. Otis retired in June they offered me her position."

"Mrs. Otis? Wow, she taught me while I was in kindergarten, she looked
old enough to retire even then." The young teacher laughed lightly and
Megan smiled at her pleasant nature.

"I'm all ready Megan," Tara said tugging gently at the cuff
of the blonde's sleeve.

"Okay Sweety, say goodbye to Ms. Fischer."

"Bye Ms. Fischer."

"Bye Tara, I'll see you tomorrow. It was nice meeting you."

"It was nice meeting you too. I'll see you around I'm sure."

"I hope so." Megan smiled and led her niece out of the classroom.

"Oh yeah, I've still got it," Megan murmured as she took
one glance back at the attractive woman who smiled back at her.

"Got what Megan?"

"Um... nothing Kiddo."

"Oh."

**

"So how was Montreal?"

"Great, it was a small newspaper but they managed to find me some actual
work instead of just sending me for coffee all day."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Megan's sister said smiling
at the younger woman. "Back into the school groove yet?"

"Not really, I hate it but I'm doing what it takes to get what
I want, I guess," Megan said fiddling with her coffee cup. "I'm
really finding it hard to motivate myself this year."

**
Lex unlocked the door the apartment just as the phone began to ring. Athena walked
out of the kitchen jumping slightly when she saw the Hunter in the doorway.

"I suppose I know who that is then," the older brunette picked
up the phone. "Hello? Yes, Mr. Schaffer, I apologize, I meant to call and
it simply slipped my mind. No, she's alright just a bit under the weather
I'm afraid, the change in seasons always brings it on. Yes, she just needs
some time to rest. Yes, of course. Thank you, goodbye now." Athena raised
an eyebrow at her before placing the cordless back on the charger. "Perhaps
next time you could make your disappearance a little less conspicuous?"

"The change of season brings it on?" Lex asked with a snort. "Sorry,
he kinda pounced on me when I was leaving."

"I don't know why they insist on this ridiculous practice. You're
over the age where you're legally bound to attend school. Why waste time
tracking those who don't want to be there when they should be focusing
on those actually in class?"

"Amen," Lex muttered as she followed her Dhaskalos into the study,
office time meant field time.

Yay me.

"There was a body found mutilated near the outskirts and the crime scene
photos aren't of any help. I can't tell whether it was a demon or
just a random, as you say, whacko."

"So we're not considering demonic whackos then?" It looked
as though Athena almost cracked a smile and the Hunter sat down in the chair
next to her Dhaskalos. "Not mad at me anymore huh?"

"No, I apologize for losing my temper, I received a call from the Tribunal
earlier in the evening that wasn't of a pleasant nature. I took my frustrations
out on you." Lex nodded sensing a 'but' coming on. "That's
not to say I wasn't angry with you and your mistake, it was foolish, but
I could've handled it more appropriately."

"I think we both could've. I shouldn't have gone out like
that without letting you know what I was doing."

"You don't have to do that, just keep your mobile on. I respect
that you're a young woman with a need for space but you must also remember
that you're more than that. Your survival is very important to the Tribunal... And
to me."

"Thanks," the teen reached over and gave her Dhaskalos a hug. "I'll
try to do better."

"Just try to be safe, that's all I ask." Athena released
her and turned her attention to the computer screen effectively ending the pseudo
emotional moment.

"So...You want me to go to the attack site and check it out?"

"No, it rained early this morning so there'll be nothing left
of the crime scene."

"It rained?" I don't remember that.

"Yes," Athena looked at her. "I thought you were out patrolling?"

"Uh no, I kinda, um, crashed at a friend's place."

"A friend?" Athena knew she didn't have any friends left.
The older woman coughed at Lexina's raised eyebrow and turned back to the
screen. "I see." The Hunter smirked and leaned over the woman's
shoulder looking at the police report.

"So if you don't want me to play CSI what do you want me to do?" Athena
reached over and handed Lex a digicam.

"Go play forensic photographer." Lex groaned, she hated the morgue.
It wasn't the dead people, she could deal with that, it was the smell.
Bodily fluids and chemical compounds; she'd found a skull boiling in a
pot once. "Go get some rest, I'll call on you for supper."

**
"Sewers, I goddamn well hate sewers." Lex pulled off the manhole
cover and dropped into the hole, using her telekinesis to move the cover back
into place. The city sewage ran parallel to the hospital maintenance tunnels
and if Athena's hack of the plans were accurate there was an access tunnel
somewhere around her current position.

She flicked on her flashlight trying to ignore the stench of human waste.
Something unidentifiable squelched under her boot and Lex let out a frustrated
groan.

I'm gonna be some kind of pissed if I ruin my leathers.

Her light swept across the tunnel and Lex caught site of the entrance. The
door was chained and padlocked and Lex sighed as she looked around for something
to pry it off. Seeing nothing she took hold of the lock.

This job can be real hell on a girl's nails.

She twisted her wrist and the steel gave way with a 'pop'. She
tossed the remnants into the murky water and ducked into the tunnels.

Alright, laundry access is over this way. Lex turned off her flashlight
and followed the corridors hoping she'd read the schematics right.

Aha, score one for the directionally challenged. Athena'd had
her sneak into the hospital morgue once before but she'd used the ventilation
shafts on the roof.

It was weeks before my allergies stopped acting up after that damn fiasco.
Although I'm not sure soiled sheets are actually a better alternative.
Next time Athena can do her own dirty work, she could have just faked being a
visiting pathologist or something but no, I have to Spiderman my way up this
stupid shaft instead.

Lexina looked up into the shaft, it was big enough to accommodate her body
but narrow enough for her to brace herself against the sides.

Someone so owes me a beer for this.

She pushed the basket to the side and stood under the shaft opening. "If
I fall to my death you're going to find an unpleasant ghost in your flat
Athena. You bloody well know I detest heights." Lex did a mental double
take of her sentence.

'Flat'? 'Bloody'? Great, now she's got me
speaking Brit. If the words 'car park' come out of my mouth she and
I are going to have a talk.

The Hunter crouched and jumped into the shaft shooting out her hands and
feet to stop her descent. She moved one hand up then the other following with
one foot then the other. Slowly, she made her way toward the fourth floor where
the hospital morgue was kept.

This would've been so much easier if they'd just taken the
body to the one downtown. Of course, Murphy's Law rears its head just to
give me a good kick in the metaphorical testes.

She froze as she heard movement above her and light shone in as one of the
trapdoors opened. Voices filtered downward and Lex strained to make out the conversation.

"Hey Carol."

"Hey Arthur."

"Those from 212?"

"Yeah, his colostomy bag broke."

His what bag? Oh no. No, no. Don't you fucking dare. Lex tried
to make herself small enough for the bundle to miss her.

"Ach." She pulled the sheets from her head allowing them to fall
to the ground below.

Thank the goddess they put those in plastic bags. I would've had
to go Xena on someone's ass. The Hunter continued her climb her shoulders
and quads burning from the effort. The laundry shoot would put her somewhere
in the ass end of the morgue, away from the reception desk and hopefully any
prying eyes. Athena was working on the security cameras. Once Lex gave her the 'go' signal
her Dhaskalos would begin a feedback loop that would tape over the footage of
Lex getting into and out of the hospital.

She reached the forth floor and braced her back against the wall. She put
on her cellular headset and dialled the house hoping there was enough of a signal
to get through. Athena picked up on the second ring.

"I'm in."

"Wait one moment, there's an orderly in the hall."

"You know, if you're gonna keep making me haul my ass around everywhere
like this you could at least do the decent thing and get me a grappling hook.
Hunter Powers do not an acrobat make."

"Nonsense, at your age this type of routine should be nothing more than
a moderate workout."

"I'm sorry I think you have me confused with a web slinging Marvel
superhero."

"Hallway's clear, go now."

"Yes'm, I be going." Lex reached over and pried open the
spring loaded door. She wriggled into the opening and out into hallway landing
with a thud. She stood up dusting herself off and taking a quick peek into the
laundry shaft.

"You know what, forget Spiderman, I so kick his ass."

"The cold storage is to your right." Lex looked around quickly
to ensure she hadn't been seen and slipped into the room.

"Whoa." Lex looked at the slabs full of partially covered bodies.
She lifted the sheet off one cadaver blue eyes widening at the large 'Y' incision
on his body. "Gross dude."

"What is it? What do you see?"

"I see dead people," Lexina answered in a small voice without
missing a beat. She smiled at the exasperated sigh on the other end of the line.

"Those weren't located at the crime scene, the killer must have
taken them with him."

"Need anything else?"

"No, I think that should be everything."

"Am I clear to go?" She heard the typing of keys as Athena checked
the cameras.

"No, three people are approaching your location."

"They gonna pass by?"

"It doesn't look like it."

"Shit, there's no other way out."

"The ventilation shaft."

"Goddamn," Lex ducked low running to the corner where the access
panel for the ventilation shaft was hidden.

"They're almost to the door."

Never again.

Lex grabbed the grate and ripped it from the wall. She tucked herself into
the vent pulling and holding the covering in place.

I hope they don't look too close. The grating had been screwed
into the wall and she'd left a nice pile of drywall dust when she'd
taken it off.

"They're coming in."

Lex held her breath as the door opened.

"You're here about the Milokov girl right?"

"Yeah, prelim done yet?"

"Here she is." Lex heard the sheet rustling and two intakes of
breath.

"Cause of death?"

"Well, that was a tough one, massive blood loss, internal damage, but
my guess would be this...Blunt force trauma. He hit her at the base of the
skull probably killed her instantly, but the lacerations happened anti-mortem."

"She was trying to run away..?"

"Your words detective, not mine, I can only tell you what killed her."

"Thanks."

"Sure thing, hope you catch the guy." The Hunter listened as two
sets of footsteps left the room.

C'mon buddy go have a coffee. A phone rang somewhere in the
room.

"Hello?" A pause. "Alright I'm on my way."

Thank fucking Christ.

"He's gone," Lex let go of the grate and kicked it out crawling
out of the small space. She stood to her full height stretching her back.

"That wasn't fun."

"Get a picture of the wound and get out of there."

"Will do."

**

"Ugh," Lex landed in a crouch and looked up at the laundry tunnel. "Do
you want me to drop off the photos before or after patrol?"

"Are you planning on coming home after patrol or are you visiting your
friend again?"

"Umm, maybe I'll drop'em off before patrol. Just in case.
I'm heading back into the tunnels so I'm going to lose the signal."

"Alright I'll see you shortly." The Hunter disconnected
the line and put the headset back in her coat pocket. She surfaced in the alley
way breathing deeply of the city air.

I'll take a lungful of diesel exhaust over rat crap any day.

A scream ripped through the alley and the teen turned toward the sound. She
took off at a sprint her heavy boots splashing in the muddy puddles of the alley.
A woman was being wolf packed by a gang of what Lex sensed were perfectly human
street punks.

Weehee, warm up.

Lex didn't bother slowing her pace as she dropped her shoulder and charged
into the nearest two. She snapped a sidekick at the arm of the boy who held the
victim hearing the distinctive pop of breaking bones. The brunette turned one
eighty hook kicking the next nearest in the head and using her momentum to throw
a roundhouse into the kidney of the last boy standing. The two she'd charged
began to gather themselves and Lex grabbed a shoulder of each and pushed sending
them off their feet and into the adjacent brick wall.

"Y'alright?" Lexina asked turning to the shaken woman who
merely nodded. She shied away as Lex approached and the Hunter held her hands
up. "Easy, I'm not gonna hurt you." She crouched and picked
the woman's purse and umbrella up handing them back to their owner.

"C'mon let's get out of here," the woman nodded again
stepping over the boy with the broken arm. They reached the open street and the
young warrior flagged down a cab. She opened the door to the vehicle waiting
for the woman to get settled before closing the door.

"Thank you," the woman said through the open window.

"No problem. Have a nice night." The cab pulled away and Lex turned
back to the assailants.

They can walk the 50 feet to the hospital, little punks. Lexina's
cell rang as she walked back to the apartment.

"Supernatural Pest Control Center, Lexina speaking." A sigh.

"One of these days it's going to be someone calling a wrong number
and then where will you be?"

"Heckling the other person's inability to accurately push numbered
buttons?" Another sigh.

"A second body has been found."

"I knew I shouldn't have gotten you that police scanner for summer
solstice."

"Harlington and Robespierre."

"On my way."

**

Lex slowed to a stop as she reached the crime scene. She pushed her way through
the crowd stopping as she reached the police barrier. She took out her camera
and snapped a few discreet pictures. The forensic team was working the area and
effectively blocking the Hunter's view of the body.

Two of the investigators stood from their crouched position and moved away
from the body and toward Lexina.

"Looks like the same MO as Milokov."

"Two girls in two days, this guy is escalating. We need to catch him
soon or we're gonna have more dead girls on our hands."

"He's got to slip up sooner or later."

"Let's just hope it's sooner." The rest of the conversation
was lost to the Hunter as the pair moved away. Sighing the brunette flipped open
her phone and dialled the apartment.

"What have you found out?"

"Cops think it was the same guy. The place is crawling with people,
I won't be able to get at the body for awhile if at all."

"That's fine, I just needed to know if we were dealing with the
same assailant. Bring me the photos, I'm going to start trying to find
the demon."

"You think it was a demon then?" Lexina asked as she moved out
of the crowd and onto the opposite street.

"I'm not certain but I'd like to investigate just in case
so we'll be prepared."

"Fair enough," Lex cut through the park adjacent to the crime
scene. The turf was worn down and had numerous bald spots, testament to years
of abuse and lack of funds to maintain the upkeep of the grounds. The sandbox
remained from where the old jungle gym had once been, the city had removed it
some time ago for safety. The park was more of an open field now then a playground.

"Ach," Lex felt her boots slip in the mud, her reflexes weren't
fast enough to get her feet back under and she grunted as her butt impacted with
the ground.

"Are you alright?" Athena's voice was muffled by the layer
of mud that coated the cell phone. The Hunter picked it up wiping off the receiver
before she spoke.

"I'm fine, just thought I'd take in a mud bath on my way
home." Lex grunted as she got to her feet. "Sewage, shit and sodden
soil, if this night gets any better by midnight I should be soaking in sulphuric
acid."

"At least your alliteration skills are beyond compare."

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Look, the uptight British woman made a funny." Lex
got to her feet with a sigh hoping no one had witnessed the rather embarrassing
debacle.

Dammit where's the camera? Ah there it is. Sitting in a muddy footprint..?

Lex bent down placing her hand next to the print, it was easily big enough
to fit her hand twice over.

"I think I found something."

"What is it?"

"A footprint, two toes. Big, very big." Lex turned on the camera
and snapped some photos putting her hand beside the print for a scale reference.

"Can you track it?"

"I'll try but the prints are probably gonna stop shortly after
the grass."

"At least we'll know which direction it headed. Perhaps we'll
be lucky and it will have left some sort of trail." The Dhaskalos' toned
indicated she thought this was an unlikely event but one could always hope. The
Hunter followed the track toward the edge of the park grimacing when she caught
site of the open manhole.

"Fuck, he's using the sewer."

"Are you certain?" Lex looked at the bent manhole cover with a
raised eyebrow.

"Eh yeah, fairly. The tracks lead right to the entrance. Whatever this
thing is it's strong enough to bend two inches of solid steel."

"Oh dear."

"Well, my thoughts had some more cursing in them but I agree." Lex
snapped a couple of photos of the twisted manhole cover and looked into the sewer.
Her backpack only held the usual vamp gear, she wasn't equipped to track
down the demon with her current armaments.

"I'm coming in, I'll load up on weapons and hunt this thing
down."

"We'll discuss tactics when you get in."

"Be there in a few."

**

"The size of the demon relative to it's footprint as well as the
footprint itself have narrowed the field..."

"But..." Lex bit into an apple as she sat placing her bare
feet up on the desk.

"The narrowed field isn't quite narrow."

"How 'unnarrow' are we talking?"

"Approximately thirteen hundred parent species not including the less
documented subspecies."

"Your definition of narrow is surprisingly wide." Her Dhaskalos
sighed and threw a book into Lex's lap.

"I'm not going through all this Mandarin on my own." Lex
lifted the tome and squinted at the cover.

"Isn't this Cantonese?"

"Bollocks."

"Indeed. As fun as this book wormy crap is I still have to go back out
for routine patrol. My leathers should be dry by now."

"Of course, when there's actual work to be done you decide it's
prudent to go prancing around killing vampires."

"Excuse me, I do not prance... I gallivant." Lex said with
a sniff as she dropped her feet to the ground and stood.

"If you decide to spend the night with your 'friend' again
let me know so I can excuse you from class beforehand. The last thing we need
is child services inquiring into your chronic absenteeism."

"School's only been in for two weeks, how can I already be chronically
absent?" Athena gave her a look and the Hunter chuckled. "I'm
going, I'm going."

"Do try to refrain from being shot."

"Everyone's a critic."

**

Lex skateboarded along the path hoping to bait, something, anything, into
attacking her. Aside from the crime scene earlier it had been a decidedly uneventful
night and she was seriously considering calling it quits despite the relatively
early hour.

I bet Kim could spice up my night.

Decision made she headed in the pub's direction reaching for her phone
as her board ate up the terrain.

"So what excuse would you like me to use for your absence?"

"I dunno, be creative. You could always say I opened an envelope with
white powder in it and was placed under quarantine."

"No, that won't work, you had anthrax last week remember?"

"Damn."

"I take it patrol was somewhat less than exciting?"

"As you would say...Quite. If there's nothing else..."

"No I think you can knock off for the night."

"Awesome, my phone'll be on if you need me."

"Right, see you in the morning."

**

"What the..?" Lex jumped off her board and kicked it into her
hand. The pub was ablaze, flames shooting from the broken windows. She grabbed
one of the onlookers, recognizing him as the bartender from last night.

"What happened?"

"Someone smashed out the windows and tossed in some Molotov's." Lex
crouched covering her head as an explosion rocked the street. "Back Bar," the
man offered as way of explanation.

"Where's Kim?" The man looked around at the crowd that was
gathering.

"I don't know, I don't think I saw her come out, she was
in the bathroom when everything started going down."

"Shit." Lex strapped her board onto her backpack and melted into
the crowd. She took the alley to get around to the back of the bar where the
bathrooms were located. The window ledge was well above her head but the Hunter
wouldn't be deterred. She jumped, landing awkwardly on the edge of the
sill bracing her arms against the frame.

Kim was slumped in the corner near the wall and she didn't look to be
moving.

"Crap," Lex prepared to kick in the window hoping she wasn't
about to do something that would cause a back draft. Her last fire safety class
had been in elementary school. The glass shattered and the Hunter ripped out
the remaining wood frame jumping into the bathroom.

"Kim," Lex shook the older girl trying to get some kind of response.
The brunette coughed, her eyes were burning from the smoke. The bathroom was
largely undamaged though Lex could feel the significant heat of the fire through
the door. They'd have to go out the way she'd come in. She took the
limp blonde in her arms jumping onto the windowsill and out into the alley. A
second explosion pitched her forward and the Hunter shielded the waitress' head
with her body wincing as shards of glass pelted her.

"Puta Madre," the Hunter shook out her hair looking up at the
window where flames were now devouring what was left of the wooden frame.

"I'm gonna take a guess and say that was the liquor room." The
blonde stirred beneath her and Lex smiled as she slowly came to. "I was
pretty sure you'd get me hot again but this is overdoing it just a tad
don't you think?" The blonde almost made a smirk.

"I was always a bit of an overachiever," she began to cough holding
her hand up to cover her mouth. "What happened?"

"Bar caught fire," Lex slowly stood bending over and taking the
smaller woman into her arms.

"Well thank you Captain Obvious, I meant how'd we end up out here?
I don't remember seeing you in the bar before I went to the washroom."

"I wasn't, I got here after all hell broke loose, bartender said
you'd been in the bathroom and hadn't come out yet. I came around
back and spotted you in there."

"That window is eight feet high." Lex shrugged as she came around
the front of the building and spotted the ambulance and fire trucks hauling ass
down the street.

"Nothing a jump and a chin up couldn't accomplish."

"You're amazing," the waitress said before tucking herself
more tightly into Lex's arms. The Hunter felt the blush coming on and was
grateful for the darkness that would hide it from her companion.

"You'll need to get checked out by the medics. I think you passed
out from smoke inhalation."

"That's possible, although I also have the worst survival reflexes.
I pass out when I'm stressed. When I heard the commotion I tried to get
out but something was blocking the door on the other side and we keep the windows
nailed shut. I kinda freaked." Lex mentally raised and eyebrow.

Wouldn't common sense dictate that it would be prudent to break
the window then?

Give her a break Lex, she's probably not used to the whole quick
life or death decisions. Not everyone actually has to make those types of decisions
on an hourly basis.

I suppose so....

Cut the kid some slack she was probably pulling a major wiggins and wasn't
thinking properly.

And unlike some people -namely herself, Lex admitted wryly- perhaps Kim didn't
react to being freaked out by lashing out at anything in reach. The Hunter's
knee jerk reaction to fear was getting her violence on and breaking whatever
she came into contact with, frequently bones, occasionally public property.

"Kim! Kim!" The bartender yelled as he caught sight of them.

"What is his name anyway?" Lex asked.

"Him? That's Matteo, why?"

"Because, I keep calling him the bartender in my head."

"I see."

"It's a quirk, don't worry about it. Can you stand?"

"I can."

"But..."

"I'm quite comfortable." Lex raised an eyebrow but made
no move to put the blonde down just yet.

"You alright girl?"

"Yeah Matt, I'm fine, thanks to tall, dark and lovely here." His
eyes went wide at the statement and the Hunter grimaced she really didn't
want this played up. A lot of her being able to do her job was linked to her
anonymity. She couldn't afford to have anyone catch wind of her abilities.

"It wasn't a big deal, I just broke a window and pulled her out." Lex
looked at the bar where the fire fighters were busy dousing the flames. Somewhere
along the course of things a number of police cars had arrived as well.

Kim followed her eyes to where the police cruisers were parked and back to
Lex nodding in understanding. "If anyone asks..."

"Haven't met you before tonight," Matteo stated with a curt
nod.

"Have no idea who you are," Kim added.

"Thanks guys, sorry the night didn't turn out better."

"Hey, I'm not a piece of KFC, I ain't complaining." Lex
smiled at the blonde before ducking into an alleyway and disappearing into the
shadows.

**

"I'm afraid the fire wasn't an isolated incident."

"What do you mean?" Lex asked as she towel dried her hair. She'd
washed her leathers for the second time tonight and left them hanging on the
balcony to air out the stench of smoke.

"It appears to have been somewhat of a concerted effort, three other
bars were attacked in the same manner, two banks were broken into, schools were
graffiti'd, grave markers were desecrated and any number of houses were
burgled."

"So ...What? Every criminal in the city decided it was his turn
to be a badass?"

"I'm afraid it may be something more sinister. I believe all these
crimes were meant to distract from the ultimate goal."

"Perhaps something in the banks? The security deposit boxes at the bank
on Eglinton were broken into."

"How long till the bank gets its inventory of the boxes sorted out?"

"Days, weeks probably, and there's no guarantee that the lists
are completely accurate."

"Does this even fall into our bailiwick? I would think it would be more
of the PD's problem then ours."

"Normally I would agree..."

"But?"

"Something is off with these attacks, they don't make sense. This
simply isn't the time of year for it."

"You mean we can schedule this type of things? Does that mean I can
book a week off for..?"

"It's statistically improbable." Athena interrupted. "Temperatures
are moderate, there's no full moon, activity this day last year was noticeably
low and there have been no major events within the last month to trigger such
a crime spree. Statistical analysis of all these factors combined with..."

"Whoa, easy with the geek speak English," Lex said holding up
hand to stop her mentor's verbal deluge.

"Why you insist on calling me that is beyond me."

"Cause it makes your ears turn red and you get this little twitch. Plus
it stops the techno babble," Lex answered reasonably. Athena tapped her
pen on the desk giving the Hunter a look. The younger brunette grinned in response.

"At any rate, there was no statistical reason for the wave nor is there
any police mention of elevated gang activity."

"So you're thinking what? Big cult thing? Impending apocalypse?
Cause I thought we acted out that drama this summer? Remember, us and Siobhan
and three other Shadow Hunters and their Dhaskalos. Dhaskaloses...Daskilli?
What is the plural for you guys anyway?" Athena rolled her eyes.

"Magical involvement is a possibility. It could explain the sudden appearance
of the demon."

"Coulda used it to distract the cops, half the PD is patrolling for
that thing."

"And the rest of the emergency units are taking care of the aftermath
of the attacks. This city is practically without protection."

"Except for me," Lex dropped to the floor. "I'll go
back out, patrol till dawn, see if I can get any information."

"There's no way your leathers are dry."

"I'll go in my school clothes, it's all the same color anyway."

"Yes well, you could stand a little variation in your color scheme."

"I have some dark blue tanks."

"I meant something you don't use to coordinate with your bruises."

"I have that one..."

"Blood red doesn't count either," Athena said beating Lex
to the punch, referring to the sole red hooded sweatshirt the Hunter possessed.
The teen sighed and walked out of the study headed for her room.

"Any specific areas that I should target?" She asked as she pulled
her towel from her body and tossed it into the laundry basket.

"Downtown will likely be the hot spot it has a high crime rate generally
speaking and most of the attacks have been closer to the suburbs."

"So the DT is gonna be deserted."

"In regards to police yes."

"Great." She tossed on a set of low rider jeans and a tank top.
A long sleeved t-shirt and hoodie followed to ward off the night's chill.
She threw on her bracers checking the trigger release for the knives to ensure
they were functioning. She tied her hair back tossing a baseball cap overtop
to complete the look. Aside from the color she looked like any typical teenager
so hopefully she could move through downtown unnoticed.

She slipped into her sketchers strapping two stakes to each leg with elasticized
Velcro bands before rolling her pant leg down. Her last adornments were her leg
sheaths a contraption she'd jerry rigged in the summer. The harness snapped
onto her belt and two straps clipped around her upper and lower quads. She'd
sewn pockets onto the straps and could hold a six inch blade and two vials of
holy water on each leg negating her need for hauling around her kit bag. She
grabbed her cell phone and headset along with her skateboard and wandered back
into the office.

"These people are coming out of the woodwork," Athena mumbled. "Do
you want me to go with you?" Lex looked at her Dhaskalos contemplating
checking the woman for fever. It wasn't that the woman was a slouch in
battle, quite the opposite, but Athena hadn't helped her patrol since she'd
been a Protégé.

"Um...No I should be okay, I'm gonna need you to prioritize
for me. I'll maintain constant comms." Lex put on her headset and
checked her cell's battery strength. "I should have enough juice
to get me through the night." Athena turned in her chair and dug into her
bag.

"Here," she handed the Hunter her cell phone. "It's
fully charged, tuck it into one of your pockets." Athena quirked an eyebrow, "unless
those are only painted on," the Dhaskalos pointed at Lex's pants.

"Very funny English, I'll have you know this is what all the cool
kids are wearing."

"Yes, I believe I've saw the gothic commando in Vogue earlier
this week, how could it have ever slipped my mind?"

"I'm leaving now," Lexina growled as she grabbed the cell
from her Dhaskalos and headed out the door.

"Wait for a second."

"What? You gonna insult my hat now?" The Hunter asked from the
hall. Athena came out of the office handing her a package full of zap straps.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with these?"

"Riot cuffs, I'll do what I can to route the police to your locations
after you've handled them."

"Sounds good," Lex slipped the package between the straps on her
thigh and cinched it a little tighter to prevent them from slipping. She felt
a hand on her shoulder and looked at her Dhaskalos quizzically.

"Be careful, you're not faster than a bullet and fire doesn't
care who it kills." The Hunter saw genuine concern in the older woman's
eyes and did her best to offer a reassuring smile.

"I'll be okay," she rested her hand atop her Dhaskalos'. "I'm
a smartass not a dumbass I'll watch my back."